


After the Fact

by MulderScullyShipper



Category: The X-Files
Genre: F/M, Mentions of other episodes so teeny tiny spoilers, Milagro spoilers, Mulder and Scully friendship, Slow Burn, UST, UST to RST, barely even spoilers tbh, post episode
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:07:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25022137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MulderScullyShipper/pseuds/MulderScullyShipper
Relationships: mulder and scully
Comments: 21
Kudos: 113





	1. Chapter One

**Chapter One**   
  


Mulder paced the harshly lit hallway like a caged tiger, ready to strike out at the first opportunity it got. Anyone who happened to pass him would glance at him cautiously, taking in the tightly pursed lips, the hand that combed through his hair every few minutes and the eyes that barely left the closed door nearby and could see that he was furious. They would simply lower their eyes and scurry on by, hoping that he wouldn’t notice them and ask questions they didn’t have answers to.

If truth were told, Mulder hadn’t noticed anyone who passed by, so focused was he on the room ten feet away, where his partner was currently being examined and subjected to a rape kit. _It’s okay,_ she had told him quietly when he had looked at her in horror and she could see even more guilt piling onto his shoulders, _nothing happened, it’s just standard procedure for female agents._

Mulder had nodded silently, rubbed her back and disappeared from the room, leaving her alone with two kind faced nurses. He didn’t want to think about how many times she had been subjected to this examination over the years. Outside the room, he had locked eyes with her through the blinds before they were closed, seeing the pain that resided within them. That was thirty minutes ago and his frustration was growing exponentially. He just wanted to be in there with her, hearing for himself that she was fine and was going to _be_ fine. Instead, he was relegated to the antiseptic scented hallway, waiting like an obedient puppy to be allowed back inside the house.

He sighed and sat down heavily on one of the three hard blue plastic chairs that lined the wall, rested his elbows on his knees and rubbed his face harshly. He was angry. Angry at Padgett for instigating the whole mess, angry because Scully had suffered once again and angry with himself for not acting sooner. He should have known that something like this would have happened. He was a profiler for gods sake. He had known that Padgett was in love with Scully from the start, had seen how he looked at her, had read what he had written about her. She had even told him that his new neighbour had been effectively stalking her.

And yet, Mulder still hadn’t seen it coming.

Even after Padgett had confessed Scully’s apparent secret for her in the prison and Mulder had seen the disappointment on the other man’s face at the realisation that she would never love him back, he still hadn’t anticipated that Padgett would go after her. He had still been racked with misplaced jealousy over what had been written about her and _The Stranger_ in Padgett’s book, even though she had told him, needlessly, that it was nothing more than a terrible work of fiction. He still couldn’t believe that he’d had the nerve to ask her if it was true; he didn’t think he would ever forget the hurt he saw in her eyes.

Mulder blamed himself for this latest hospital visit. It had been his decision to let Padgett go, so how could he not? He had been the one to run out of the apartment to chase down his neighbour and leave her alone when the accomplice was still out there. For all he knew, Padgett had contacted Naciamento on his way home from the prison to direct him to go after Scully.

Mulder rubbed his face harshly again and his eyes followed a nurse as she hurried past. As she disappeared into a room further down the hall, he leant back in his chair and stretched his long legs out in front of him and glanced again at the closed door opposite. Impatience bubbled inside him. His foot began to tap in annoyance against the tiled floor and it eventually forced him from his seat to begin his route back and forth in the corridor once again.

As he walked, his mind turned as it usually did in circumstances such as these, to his partnership with Scully. He honestly had no idea why she stayed. She could have and should have gotten out years ago, before she invested far more to their department than any one person should have. She shouldn’t have had to make the sacrifices that she’d been forced to make. She had lost her sister and her ability to have children because of the quest he himself had started long before she even contemplated joining the FBI.

After the fiasco over the previous summer when she had very nearly quit the Bureau altogether and before she became thoroughly reinvested in the work, Mulder knew that he should have let her go. He should never have made a clumsy pass at her and instead let her walk away from him and the Bureau to have the life she wanted and deserved. Instead she withdrew her resignation and, despite the two of them being reassigned under Alvin Kersh’s purview, their desire to stop the Syndicate’s plans from coming to fruition was reignited.

So, he had accepted that she wanted to stay. Accepted that she wanted to continue their search for the truth, despite not having access to their files any longer. Accepted that she would fly under Kersh’s radar with him and go off to some undisclosed location at short notice to investigate a possible lead.

Because that was what they did. They fought the fight together. Nobody else could or would ever understand their lives and the truth was, that nobody else cared. As far as the world was concerned, he and Scully were a few fries short of a happy meal; why else would they pursue the cases they did if they weren’t?

Mulder had thought that they were growing closer as they ran headlong into the unknown together, choosing to slowly change the nature of their relationship from friendship to something other than friendship. Mulder had anticipated that one of them would have the courage to take the next step after Scully had been shot in New York. He had gone so far as to arrange taking her to dinner once she had recovered enough to eat real food again and not the bland, boring food she was restricted to while her stomach healed. _Somewhere fancy with real tablecloths, no laminated menus and no beehive hair wearing, bubblegum snapping waitresses_ he had told her. _A grown up restaurant_ he had said, which had made her smile. _Like a… date_ she had asked, blushing when he had nodded. Only, they had never gotten that far as Diana exploded back into their lives like a bomb and systematically destroyed all the progress he and Scully had made. He still wasn’t entirely sure that Scully had forgiven him for how badly he had treated her during the El Rico disaster.

“Mr. Mulder?” A soft voice broke through his thoughts. He turned to look at the owner of the voice and saw it was one of the nurses from the examination room. “You can go in now,” she said with a smile. “Dana is asking for you.”

Nodding his thanks, Mulder skirted around her and entered the room again to find a green surgical scrub clad Scully alone and standing next to the gurney she had just been lay on. The clothes she had been wearing sat in police evidence bags on the counter, needing to be checked over by forensics officers but Mulder knew it was pointless. There would be no trace of Scully’s attacker within the material. Dragging his attention from the bags, he looked at his partner and wasn’t at all surprised to see that she looked more exhausted than she had been. It had been a long few days for them.

“Hey,” he began carefully as he approached her. “Everything… okay?” She nodded and forced a tight smile for him and he noticed that she wouldn’t meet his eyes. He reached out and rubbed her upper arms gently.

She whispered his name as her eyes closed. “Don’t treat me like a victim,” she murmured, glancing up at him as she felt the hesitancy in his touch. “I’m not made of glass. I won’t break.”

Mulder swallowed hard and forced his own smile as he wrapped his arms around her and drew her into a hug. Relief swept through him when she laid her head on his chest and hooked an arm around his waist and held his elbow with her free hand. She may have said she wouldn’t break, but Mulder was certain that she already had. “Have they given you any idea of when you can leave?”

She nodded against him as she relaxed into the hug for a moment longer but then she extracted herself from him and climbed up onto the gurney, grimacing a little at the twinge in her lower back from when she had hit the floor. “The nurse has gone to sign my discharge papers.”

Mulder nodded and shoved his hands into his jeans pockets. “What did they say about the er… the blood loss?”

She shrugged and scraped her fingers through her hair, feeling them get stuck in the dried blood that had pooled behind her after the attack. She felt nauseous and forced down the bile that was trying to work it’s way up. “My blood volume is normal. It’s like I didn’t lose anything.” Mulder flicked his eyes to the evidence bag behind her where her bloody white blouse told a different story. “My ECG came back normal as well,” she continued, oblivious to his perusal of her bagged clothes. “It’s like it never even happened.”

Mulder nodded and hopped up onto the gurney next to her. “Are you sure you don’t want me to call your mom? Let her know what’s happened?”

She shook her head. “No, she um… she doesn’t need to know. It’ll only upset her and I’m fine.” She glanced up at him and sighed. “I just want to go home Mulder. I want to shower, sleep for a week and forget that Padgett and his stupid book ever even existed.”

Mulder nodded and smiled reassuringly as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and tugged her to him. As she lay her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, he dropped a kiss into her hair. He was worried about her reaction to what had happened tonight. While running into danger wasn’t an uncommon occurrence for either of them, the impact this attack had had on Scully was. He couldn’t help but wonder whether she would fall apart again.

The door opened and two sets of eyes looked over to find a formally dressed Skinner entering the small examination room. Even at this time of the evening he was still as professional as ever. Neither Mulder nor Scully made any effort to move from their positions on the gurney and Skinner didn’t mention their closeness. It was nothing he hadn’t turned a blind eye to before.

“Sir, what are you doing here?” Mulder asked for both he and Scully.

“I had a call to tell me one of my agents was in the hospital. I was on my way home but I thought I’d better come down and see what was going on.” He flicked his eyes to the bags behind them on the counter and looked at Scully in her green scrubs. “Agent Scully, are you okay?”

She sat up and looked at her superior and as she did, Mulder’s hand dropped from her shoulder. He knew she felt uncomfortable at allowing their superior to see them so close, so he didn’t react. “Yes Sir, I’m fine.” Skinner glanced at Mulder who clenched his jaw at her use of those words. “I’m just waiting for my discharge papers and then Agent Mulder will take me home.”

Right on cue, one of the nurses from earlier came back into the room holding a sheaf of papers in her hand. “Excuse me gentlemen, I need to speak to Miss Scully alone, so if you could please step outside for a few minutes?”

Mulder squeezed Scully’s hand, which was gripping the edge of the bed like a vice and followed Skinner outside into the hallway. As Skinner closed the door behind himself, Mulder walked down the hall a few steps, rubbing his mouth roughly.

“What the hell happened Mulder?” Skinner asked quietly. “I’ve spoken to the detective in charge and I’ve had the official story. I want to know what really went on tonight.”

Mulder shook his head and sighed, not even sure if he could answer that question, but he appreciated that Skinner knew there was more to it than just the attack. The older man had come a long way in six years of being their superior. “Honestly?” Mulder said quietly. “I don’t even know where to start.”

“Detective Andrews told me shots were fired in your building. Apparently the people across the hall from you called the police.”

Mulder sank into the same chair he had earlier wanted to kick down the hallway. Skinner followed suit and sat on the third, leaving a space between them. “Scully was…” He shook his head and tried again. “My neighbour, Padgett, he was stalking her. He’d been following her for some time, documenting everything she did and his obsession with her… he wrote her into his book.”

“What?” Skinner looked confused. “How did he end up living in your building?”

Mulder huffed a mirthless laugh and shook his head. “There was nothing to rent in hers and he knew she spent a lot of time at my place.”

Mulder exhaled slowly and ran his fingers through his hair, not sure how much to share, but decided that since Skinner had come down to the hospital, he deserved answers. Mulder began to explain as best he could about the case they had been working on, making sure to omit the details of the book and Padgett’s confession in the prison earlier that day. He rubbed his face again, hardly able to believe how quickly things had escalated.

Skinner nodded and glanced at the room where Scully was still speaking with the nurse. “Scully will corroborate this? She’ll sign a statement confirming that Ken Naciamento is the one who attacked her?”

That was the sixty four thousand dollar question, mused Mulder. “She said she doesn’t remember anything,” he said instead. “And besides, Naciamento is dead. He died several years ago in Brazil.”

“Mulder, the DCPD are going door to door in your building and adjacent buildings as we sit here. Are you trying to tell me that they’re wasting their time and they’re looking for a… for a ghost?”

A passing doctor heard Skinner’s final words and looked at the two men curiously. Mulder watched the doctor continue on down the corridor and then turned to his superior with a wry smile. “You might want to watch who you say things like that around. You’ll get a reputation.”

Ignoring him, Skinner sighed heavily. “She’ll have to give a statement about what happened. You both will. I suggest you come up with something plausible that won’t ruffle any feathers.”

The two men stared at one another. “You mean lie.” It wasn’t a question. Skinner gave Mulder a warning look, who in turn shook his head. “Don’t worry Sir, we won’t say anything that makes the FBI look bad.”

“Dammit Mulder, that’s not what I meant,” growled Skinner quietly.

“Then what did you mean?”

The door to Scully’s room opened and she stepped out into the hallway, effectively ending the conversation between the two men. She smiled without emotion at the nurse, who handed her a piece of paper and excused herself, looking for at both men who had stood when she appeared. She could tell that something was wrong but she was too tired to ask.

“Um, I’m free to go,” she said hesitantly, looking from one man to the other.

Mulder nodded and looked at Skinner. “Thank you for coming down here Sir. We’ll present ourselves tomorrow to give our statements.” Without waiting for a response, he turned back to his partner. “Come on, let’s get you home.”

They walked away and disappeared around a corner, leaving Skinner alone to think about what Mulder had told him. He had no idea what to believe when it came to those two anymore. He just hoped that they could come up with some kind of explanation for why Scully had discharged her weapon six or seven times and why there was a dead body sans heart in the furnace room of the building. As he began to head back to his own car, he removed his glasses and squeezed the bridge of his nose, hoping to relieve some of the pressure that had begun to build. Those two always gave him a headache.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The drive home from the hospital and certain things start to come to light.

**Chapter Two**

The drive back to Scully’s apartment was a silent one. Neither felt much like talking, not that they could find anything to say. They were both lost in their own heads, overthinking what had happened. Mulder shifted in his seat when he pulled to a stop at a red light and wrung his hands on the steering wheel as the image of a bloodied Scully forced its way into his minds eye again.

“Are you okay?” Scully’s voice was quiet in the interior of the car.

Mulder looked over at her as the light turned green. He set off again and nodded. “Shouldn’t it be me asking you that question?”

“I’m fine,” she replied. “Really. I’m just… I’m exhausted.”

“Scully-”

“I _am_ fine,” she insisted, fighting back a surge of emotion that left her with wet eyes. “I know how much you hate me saying that, but I’m okay.” She paused and sniffed. “I have the worst headache, I’m desperate for a shower and I need to sleep.” She reached over to place a hesitant hand on his knee, which he covered with his own. “Mulder, I know you want me to give you answers about what happened. I don’t blame you, but not tonight. Please. I can’t face it tonight.”

He nodded and gave her a brief smile as he squeezed her hand lightly. “Okay,” he said. “We won’t talk about it.”

A half smile crossed her lips as she took her hand back and returned to staring out of the window. She knew he wanted to know what had happened, but she couldn’t talk about it yet. Not until every time she closed her eyes, she stopped seeing Naciamento’s face. She rubbed her chest absentmindedly as the sensation of his phantom fingers pushing into her chest appeared again.

Scully knew the doctor was dead. She had seen his death certificate, been assured that the man that was dead and buried, was the man listed. But he had been in Mulder’s apartment, hovering over her and forcing his hand inside her, ready to leave Mulder to find her in a pool of her own blood and her still beating heart on the floor next to her. That image hit her like a ten ton truck and she felt the bile rising up inside her and this time she couldn’t keep it down.

“Mulder, stop the car,” she managed to croak out.

Without even questioning her, he did as she asked, steering the car to the side of the road and into a parking lot they just happened to be passing by. The car hadn’t even come to a full stop before she was pulling off her seatbelt and stumbling out of the car to vomit what little contents of her stomach there were, onto the ground by the wheel.

Mulder climbed out after her, retrieved a bottle of water from the trunk of the car and rounded the car to hand it to her along with a pack of plastic wrapped tissues. She took them gratefully, rinsed and spit a couple of times, drank half the bottle then wiped her mouth as she leant against the hood of the car. It wasn’t the first time Mulder had seen her throw up. There had been a couple of times during her cancer treatment that she had thrown up unexpectedly in the footwell of his car after driving her home from the hospital. He hadn’t said anything then either, he simply handed her a bottle of water and a tissue, helped her into the backseat to lie down and took her home, without mentioning it ever again.

“Feeling better?” he asked when she screwed the lid back onto the bottle. Scully nodded and rubbed her face. “You sure? You look a little pale.”

“I’m okay,” she answered quietly.

“You wanna lie down?” Mulder asked, gesturing to the backseat, but she shook her head. “Okay,” he nodded. “Let me know when you feel up to moving and I’ll-”

“How did I not know?” Scully looked up at him with wet eyes that he could see she was struggling to stay in control of.

“Know what?” Mulder asked, leaning against the car next to her, feeling his own heart breaking at her words.

“That he was always around.” She sniffed and shook her head. “I’m supposed to be a trained federal agent. How did I not realise that he was following me and documenting everything I did so he could write it in that stupid book of his?”

“Scully-”

“Don’t make excuses for me Mulder,” she interrupted, feeling one of her tears escape and roll over her cheek.

“I wouldn’t do that,” he assured, keeping his voice purposely calm.

“It feels like I failed,” she admitted.

“Then we both failed. I didn’t spot him either.”

Scully huffed a laugh and wiped her cheeks. “We’re pretty lousy agents aren’t we?”

“Don’t let Kersh hear you say that,” joked Mulder. “He’s been looking for an excuse to get rid of us for months.” When she gave him a small smile, he sighed and shoved his hands into his jeans pockets. “Listen, Padgett was… disturbed and he was delusional. _You_ are not to blame for any of this. He never made himself known to you, so why would you even suspect that he was watching you? You had no reason to suspect anything.”

“He wanted me to love him.”

“You can’t love someone you don’t know.” Mulder let out a long sigh and looked at her. “Scully, he may have noticed you but he didn’t _see_ you.”

She furrowed her brow and looked up at him. “What do you mean?”

“I mean… I mean, okay, so he noticed that you like to go running in a certain place or you might go to a particular church to appreciate the architecture, but he didn’t see _you_ as a person. He doesn’t know what Dana Scully is like behind closed doors. He didn’t see what makes you… you.”

“What are you talking about?”

He shrugged, feeling like he had opened Pandora’s box and since he couldn’t put the lid back on, he decided to just go with it. “Well for a start, he didn’t know about that ridiculous bee pollen kick you were on because you said it was a superfood and would help you lose a few pounds, even though I told you at the time you were a scientist and should know better.”

Scully dipped her head to hide a smile as she recalled the incident he was referring to not long after their return from Antarctica. He had been so disappointed that she had bought into the ridiculous diet fad in the first place. He had told her that he would never understand why women would never be satisfied with their weight, even if they looked like she did.

“He didn’t know that you love Audrey Hepburn and old movies,” continued Mulder, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly as he did. “And he didn’t know that you have a thing for classic rock and even though you tell me off for playing it too loud in the car, you’re still secretly singing along. He didn’t know that Journey and Chicago are your guilty pleasures,” he chuckled, drawing a smile from Scully too.

“He didn’t know that you like to relax in a bubble bath filled with those oils you have stacked around your bathroom, a face mask and a nice Merlot. He didn’t know you have a thing for old slapstick comedy movies, or that you’re an amazing cook and can bake the best brownies I’ve ever eaten in my whole life. I’m not even kidding,” insisted Mulder with a smile when he saw her cheeks redden a little, “those things should be a food group all on their own.

“He didn’t know that you like to paint your toenails that pale pink colour, or that you’ve been known to cry at the theatre. I promise not to tell anyone about that.” He smiled when she chuckled in embarrassment, recalling their trip to see Miss Saigon for her birthday. “He didn’t know that you’re a secret fan of science fiction movies and that The Matrix is one of your favourites.” Mulder shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair. “Scully, he claimed to love you, but how could he when he knew nothing about you? Like I said, he may have noticed Agent Scully, but he didn’t see Dana. He didn’t see _you_.”

Scully remained silent, taking in and trying to process everything that Mulder had just said. She knew that he was right. Padgett didn’t know her. He noticed her and thought he knew her and the inner workings of her heart and when he came to realise that her heart wasn’t for the taking, he turned on her. But Mulder… he _did_ know her. _He saw her._

Mulder knew when it was that time of the month and made sure he didn’t antagonise her by breathing the wrong way. He would bring her a double chocolate muffin from the bakery he knew she liked and leave it on her desk with a takeout coffee like it was nothing. They never spoke about it, Scully just accepted the gesture each month and she always repaid him the following week by bringing him the breakfast bagel he liked as a thank you. It was never discussed, it just happened each month like clockwork and that was that.

As winter had approached, he began to filter cases that looked interesting depending on where in the country it was and whether it would be snowing. He knew that she had a thing about snow since Antarctica and would be prone to flashbacks now and again.

Mulder knew that while he didn’t think she needed to lose weight, he would make sure not to bring pizza to her place unannounced more than twice a month and would oftentimes bring round the chicken salad that she enjoyed, making sure that the dressing came in a separate pot. Mulder made an effort with her mother when he had no obligation to do so, talking with her if he picked up the phone when he was at her apartment, frequently refusing to give her the handset until he’d finished his own conversation with her.

It was Mulder that enabled her secret love of science fiction movies by bringing over videos every now and again. While The Matrix may have been her favourite sci-fi movie, they’d made their way through some brilliant but terrible B movies, and had rediscovered their love of The Thing: the original with James Arness as the monster. As much as she loved Kurt Russell, Arness’ monster was by far the superior and instantly made the 1951 version a classic.

She glanced up at him. “You see me Mulder?” she asked, her voice quiet.

He toed the ground self-consciously before looking at her and nodding. “I’ve always seen you Scully. Always.”

They held each other’s gaze for a second before Mulder became embarrassed and looked away, clearing his throat awkwardly and Scully come to realise what he was actually telling her. He didn’t have to say the words. He didn’t need to. It was written all over his face and she berated herself for not seeing it sooner. Now she could see it, now that she knew what to look for, it was so obvious.

And as she stood there in the darkened parking lot with him, she realised that this wasn’t the first time she had seen him look at her like that. It was a discussion about iced tea and root beer on a stakeout. It was a smile at her bedside when she had woken from her coma. It was a hand on her cheek on their first case back together. It was him reaching over the table to swipe away a smudge of barbecue sauce from the corner of her mouth.

It was a conversation on a rock in the dead of night. It was a hug in a crowded courtroom. It was a monologue about keeping him whole and an aborted kiss in his hallway that they never talked about. It was a billion little things that, when she really thought about it, all condensed down into one singular realisation.

Mulder loved her. Mulder was _in love_ with her _._

She turned to look at him, ready to confess her own secrets of the heart. She licked her lips nervously before murmuring his name, but as she did, a flash of lightning split the sky overhead, turning night to day for a split second, followed by a deafening clap of thunder seemingly directly overhead, startling both of them. Scully couldn’t help but wonder if the universe was trying to tell her to keep her mouth shut. For now, she would, but she wouldn’t keep quiet forever. She was too exhausted to keep carrying this secret inside of her. It weighed down on her more and more, becoming heavier and heavier with every passing month.

“Let’s get out of here,” Mulder said, stepping to the side and opening the passenger door for her while eyeing the clouds above, as large drops of rain began to hit the windscreen with a loud splat. “The heavens are about to open.”

Scully gave him a half smile but climbed into the car anyway. Mulder jogged around to the drivers side and only just made it before the rain began to pour as though someone had tipped a bucket of water over the car. He huffed a laugh and rubbed his hair free of the precipitation that had landed on him and turned the engine on. After flicking the windscreen wipers onto full power, he steered the car back onto the road and in the direction of Scully’s apartment building.

She watched him surreptitiously on the drive, glancing at him carefully now and again, knowing that there were things that needed to be said, things that needed to be discussed. As she rubbed her chest right where ghostly fingers had forced their way inside her chest, she felt like she had a second chance and didn’t intend to waste it. One way or another, things were going to change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m working on the next chapter and hope to have it finished soon.


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

Scully sat in a high backed leather chair, one leg crossed over the other and swivelled side to side while drumming her fingers on the armrests and laying her head against the back of the chair to look up at the ceiling. A pencil was balanced between her upper lip and nose, held in place by a pout. She was bored. More than bored. Mulder was reading through some books and files researching their next case, while she hung around the office and waited for him to throw her breadcrumbs about what to expect. She should have said no when he turned up at her door and asked her to join him. As usual though, her ability to say no to him on a weekend correlated directly with whether he was wearing the heather grey T-shirt that hugged him in all the right places and brought out the hazel in his eyes – he was – and whether he was wearing the faded blue Levi’s jeans – he was. She was powerless to resist, but now she was regretting her choice a little, grey T-shirt or not.

It was a Saturday morning, the sun was shining and the temperature outside was already somewhere in the low eighties. If she was to be asked, she would say that she wanted to be doing one of two things; sitting in a garden drinking wine or sitting on an isolated beach, listening to the waves lapping gently against the sand with a picnic and a bottle of wine. The wine was important. Instead she was sitting in a hot office, annoyed, not for the first time, that there was no air conditioning in the basement and becoming more and more fed up at wasting her day.

She sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that morning and continued to swivel in her chair and stare at the pencil punctured ceiling. A couple of stray pencils still clung to the tiles above Mulder’s head and the mischievous side of her personality desperately wanted one of them to fall and hit him on the head, in a kind of immature retribution for bringing them here for the day.

“Mulder, why are we here?” she eventually asked, tossing the pencil onto the desk, unable to bear the silence any longer.

Mulder turned the page of the large book he was reading through and answered without looking up at her. “That Scully, is a question I ask myself every day. Jungians believe that the meaning of life is to accept who you are after spending the first half of your existence, experimenting until you find the version of yourself that gives you the greatest happiness. Whereas Kant believed that to live a good life, doing good for others, being the best version of yourself that you can be, meant that you had lived your life spectacularly well and that in itself gave it meaning.” He sighed and scratched his chin. “But then you have Douglas Adams who wrote in Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, that the meaning of life equates to the number 42. And then we’re left with a quandary because _I_ live at number 42 and you know as well as I do that the meaning of life does _not_ exist within the walls of my apartment.”

He looked up at Scully, who was now watching him with amusement sparkling in her eyes and a barely concealed grin on her face. “Are you kidding me?”

“That’s not what you meant?” he asked innocently, knowing exactly what she was referring to. Scully rolled her eyes, tilted her head a little and stared pointedly at him. “Oh, you mean _here_?” he said, gesturing to their office.

“Yes, I mean here,” she replied, unable to keep the grin from her face any longer. “Mulder, it’s gorgeous outside. Why are we spending our first free Saturday in months, locked away in a basement office with no windows? What could be so important that we waste away down here, on our own, when nobody expects us to be here?”

“I’ll have a memo sent to all the criminals out there to not commit any crimes when it’s sunny,” he said as he turned another page in his book. “Or when it’s a Saturday.” He deserved the ball of paper that hit him in the side of the head.

She looked at the pencil directly above Mulder’s head and narrowed her eyes at it, willing it to fall, just for her own pleasure. When it stayed securely where it was, she frowned and lowered her gaze to her partner, fighting the urge to stick out her lip and sulk. “I know what you’re doing,” she said after a moment of studying his face. “You’ve been doing it all week.”

“And what’s that?” Mulder asked, turning another page.

“You’re trying to keep me occupied. You think that if you bring me to the office on a Saturday or take me out to dinner or the movies and then accidentally fall asleep on my sofa afterwards, that I won’t be lonely, or think about Padgett or worry that Naciamento is going to show up again.”

Scully saw his panic face at the realisation that his motives had been uncovered. She exhaled slowly as she pushed back her chair and stood, rounding the desk and perching herself on the corner next to a pile of folders that Mulder had pulled from the filing cabinet to her right. He watched her, his panic face still firmly present as he waited for her to speak again.

“I’m okay you know,” she said quietly, tracing a manicured nail over the surface of the desk. She flicked her eyes to his and then looked back at her hand. “I appreciate what you’re doing, but really, I’m alright. I don’t want you to feel like you have to protect me.”

“Would you tell me if you weren’t?”

Scully inhaled and exhaled carefully, thinking about what he had asked. Neither of them were exactly forthcoming about their emotions, but after the previous weekend, they were both trying to be a little better at being honest with one another. She looked at him and gave him a small smile as she nodded slowly. “Yeah,” she answered in a soft voice. “I would.”

Mulder nodded and closed the book. “I just want you to be safe,” he admitted.

“I know. And I am.”

They looked at one another for the longest moment, both wearing small identical smiles on their lips. _Gazing_ , Mulder thought to himself. _Maybe Holman was right, I do gaze at Scully_. Mulder took a deep breath and cleared his throat as he averted his eyes, the two of them both looking away from one another as they realised just how intense the look they shared was becoming. He stood and returned the book to the shelf behind him and turned back to Scully, who was still sitting on the corner of his desk and biting her lip as she looked anywhere but at him.

“Hey, I um… I’m sorry for dragging you down here today. Why don’t we get out of here?”

“You read my mind,” she smiled as she hopped off the desk and walked backwards towards the door. “Come on, you can take me to lunch. I’m thinking… sushi?”

Mulder sat back in his chair to power down the computer. “Am I buying?”

She grinned and nodded. “Absolutely. I think it’s only fair for dragging me down here, don’t you?”

Mulder mock sighed and stood. “Fine, I’ll- ow!”

One of the pencils that had been hanging from the ceiling, had finally broke free of it’s tile prison and landed on Mulder’s head, before clattering onto the floor. Scully couldn’t help it; she laughed. Great big belly laughs that had her leaning against the doorframe for balance and gasping for air. Mulder bent and retrieved the offending writing implement from the floor and tossed it on the desk, grinning at his partner’s delight.

“This amuses you?” Mulder asked, rounding the desk and approaching her.

Scully could only nod as she giggled. “I’m sorry,” she gasped, sounding anything but. “I’ve been willing it to fall all morning,” she admitted as she stepped aside to allow Mulder to lock the office up tightly.

“Charming,” he said with a chuckle, finding her too rare laughter infectious.

“Lets go.” Scully looped her arm through his as they made their way to the parking garage. “We’ll make sure there are no chandeliers above our table.”

Mulder chuckled as she began to laugh once more and allowed her to lead him out to his car. He was quite happy to take the teasing laughter from her. She didn’t do it enough, which didn’t come as a surprise to him. The last few years, their lives had been filled with far more sorrow than two people should experience. They deserved happiness as much as anyone else, but it always seemed to pass them by.

Laughter wasn’t the only thing passing them by. Mulder recalled a conversation they’d had while driving through Nevada, not that long ago, when she had asked him if he ever wanted to get out of the car, stop the constant driving and settle down, have a life. He’d said no at the time, believing that chasing down answers to questions that nobody else seemed willing to ask, was the most important thing to him. He had spotted the flash of disappointment cross her features at his answer and had dismissed it at the time.

But now, after the events of the previous weekend, Mulder knew that he was ready to slow down his pursuits of the unknown. Not give them up entirely, he couldn’t do that, not while the question of what happened to his sister remained unexplained. But now… now he was open to the idea of being with someone, being in a relationship. Open to the idea of coming home to someone at night, of laughing with someone. Of loving someone.

As he unlocked his car and opened the passenger side door for her, Mulder looked at Scully, still wearing a smile on her lips, and knew that there was only one person with whom he wanted to be with. He just hoped that she felt the same way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Life has gotten in the way a little and writing has been put on the back burner. I had this bouncing around my brain a little though and needed to get it out. 
> 
> I just couldn’t help but wonder how they would act with one another in the aftermath of Padgett. I’ve no idea on timescales between Milagro and The Unnatural, so I’m taking liberties a little, but this happens BEFORE The Unnatural.
> 
> I have my reasons for this (next chapter), which I’m hoping I’ll be able to put down in words soon. I have a vague idea where I’m going with this, so hopefully it will pan out.
> 
> Feedback, as always, is much appreciated.


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After an evening spent teaching Scully how to play baseball, Mulder takes her for dinner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve taken a few liberties with locations in this chapter. I doubt there are places like the ones I’ve described, but when I planned this chapter, this location is all I could picture, so I just went with it. :)

**Chapter Four**

  
A week passed without incident and after the conversation the previous week, Mulder felt like he didn’t need to fall asleep on Scully’s sofa anymore. He still called her on the evenings they hadn’t made any plans and while Scully felt it was unnecessary, she wasn’t going to ask him to stop. There had been so much tension between them lately that she feared if she brought up his phone calls, that they would slip back to where they had been only weeks before with the constant snapping at one another and pushing each other away.

Scully knew that as much as the Padgett case had brought up a lot of conflicting emotions, he had inadvertently helped push her and Mulder closer together again. It felt like they were both back on the same page with a lot of things and she didn’t want to lose that again. If truth were told, she felt much closer to him now than she had in a long time, so much so that even with Diana Fowley hanging around like a bad smell, she didn’t feel threatened by the other woman’s presence. It even felt to Scully as though Mulder had realised that Diana was attempting to insinuate herself between the two of them and drive a wedge between them. Whatever wedge there had been, had been destroyed after Padgett’s attack.

Spending time on the baseball field tonight had proven that to Scully. As little as three days before the attack, Mulder had been spending more time with Diana, but that had ended and now it was as though she herself were the centre of his universe. It felt a little unnerving at first if she were honest with herself. Scully knew how she felt about her partner, had made peace with it a long time ago. But it seemed to her that Mulder had just come to his own realisation and was working his way through his feelings to determine the best way to deal with them.

And it was why the message he had left on her answering service had surprised her so much. His tone could only have been described as flirtatious; using a phrase such as _cute little butt_ could only really be taken one way. She had suspicions that he had finally reached a decision and this would be the evening in which his decision was realised, but honestly, she didn’t want to get her hopes up.

After spending the evening playing baseball and talking, Mulder had suggested going for a late dinner, to which Scully had agreed, but only if she could go home and change first. So she had. Mulder drove her home, waited while she changed into a royal blue camisole, oversized button up sweater, jeans and heels. She didn’t fail to notice the way his eyebrows had almost disappeared into his hairline and how she could almost feel his eyes skimming her body when she stepped out of her bedroom. Scully could tell that when she had said she wanted to change her clothes, he hadn’t expected her to change into something like this.

_Wow, you look… good_ he had said. Scully knew that ‘good’ was a huge compliment from a man that was just a friend, so she knew he was impressed. _See Mulder,_ she thought to herself, _I’m not just serious suits and business, I’m a woman too_. She was glad that he was finally noticing.

* * *

The restaurant Mulder and Scully found themselves at, Mr. Chang’s, was busy and noisy, with servers dashing about taking food and drinks to tables packed with people enjoying a night out after a hard week at work. Mr. Chang’s was a popular restaurant any day of the week, even more so on a Saturday night, so Scully knew they’d struggle to get a table but to her surprise, Mulder had apparently called ahead and booked them in. She eyed him suspiciously when the woman at the front lectern gathered up two menus and led them through the restaurant to a table for two by the side window that overlooked the water.

“Can I get you anything to drink?” asked the server as Mulder and Scully took their seats.

“I’ll take a Sprite,” said Mulder, then looked at Scully. “Wine?” She nodded and smiled as she removed her sweater. “Red wine for the lady. Merlot.”

“Great. You guys get settled and I’ll have your server bring them over.”

They both thanked the woman and then Mulder looked over at Scully. “Okay, what did I do,” he asked with a sigh. “You’ve been eyeballing me since we arrived.”

“Nothing,” she said with a laugh. “I’m just wondering how you managed to get a table at such short notice.”

Mulder shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Well, you see here’s the thing,” he began, leaning forward a little, almost conspiratorially, “I _may_ have enlisted Langly to hack into their online booking system to make sure we got a spot.”

Scully’s eyes widened at his words. “You did not.”

A grin broke out on Mulder’s face and he began to laugh. “No I didn’t,” he laughed, which earned him an amused eye roll. “I do have to confess that I’ve had the reservation for a few days though.”

“So what you’re saying is… you planned this.”

“I… may have done… yeah,” admitted Mulder with a careful nod.

“All of it? Even the baseball?”

“No, that was unplanned. I got to talking with Dales and he said a few things and I just, I dunno, wanted to spend some time with you,” he said sheepishly, almost embarrassed at being so open with her. “The plan originally was to call you, tell you to get dressed up and then show up at your door.” He shrugged. “Standard Mulder move,” he laughed.

Her eyebrow cocked and a wry smile quirked her lips. “Oh, so tonight was a move?”

Mulder shifted in his seat but couldn’t hide the smile. “Yeah.”

Scully picked up her menu. “Okay,” she nodded, “but um… you only had to ask if you wanted to take me on a date.” She smirked at him over the top of her menu.

“I will bear that in mind,” he said with a small smile, then opened up his own menu.

For the next hour and a half, they ate, talked, laughed and shared stories with one another, stories they had never told before. Stories about their childhoods, stories about where they grew up, stories about their families. Mulder told her all about his time at Oxford, having touched upon it a little in the past and promised that he would take her there one day because he knew she would love it. In return, Scully shared anecdotes about her time at Berkeley before she transferred to the University of Maryland, telling him about the protests she got caught up in and how during spring break, she and a friend had rented a car to drive up the Pacific highway and explored the west coast without either of their parents knowing. They had simply sent postcards every time they stopped with promises that they were fine and would be home before school started again.

There was an unspoken agreement to keep work out of their conversations and it worked, so while they both thought they knew everything there was to know about one another after six years of working closely together, they found that there were still secrets to be uncovered. Revelations about childhood pets and first serious relationships were traded, there was laughter and smiles, even when lost family members were brought up.

They could almost pretend that they were two normal people with normal lives who had met in a normal way, instead of being flung together in a whirlwind of little grey men and things that go bump in the night. Sometimes Scully wished that she had met Mulder somewhere other than the FBI. She would often imagine what it would be like if they had met in a coffee shop or on a blind date but she knew if they had, they would never be the people that they were. They had to live through the traumatic times to get to this place.

After dinner, neither wanted the night to end so rather than going to a bar where they would undoubtedly be unable to hear each other speak, Mulder suggested a walk along the side of the river. On leaving the restaurant and stepping out into the mild night air, he held his hand out to Scully, who looked at it, smiled and took it, allowing him to lead her down a flight of steps at the end of a bridge and onto the towpath that ran the length of the small tributary river that fed into the Potomac. As they began to walk, Scully kept her hand in Mulder’s, letting their fingers lace together, almost hidden by her sweater sleeve that hung over her hands.

Strings of small white lights hung between the cast iron streetlights that shone brightly. On the opposite bank of the river, small cafes and bars catered to young couples and groups of friends. Laughter and chatter drifted over the wide expanse of the river, giving people cause to smile at each other as they passed by. It was, Scully couldn’t help but think, a romantic evening, but she didn’t find it strange. It felt right, like their fates had aligned and they were standing at a fork in their shared path; one road led to nothing but friendship and the other led to what Scully had no doubt would be the great love of her life. Describing it as anything else, felt wrong. She wondered whether Mulder felt the same.

“You ever been out this way before?” Mulder asked out of the blue.

“No, never. It’s gorgeous down here, I can’t believe we’re still in Washington.”

“We should do it more often, come out here I mean.” He raised their joined hands to gesture at a pavement café further up the towpath. “We could come back for lunch and coffee tomorrow, if you’re free?”

“Oh, no, I can’t, I told my mom I’d go to the cemetery with her. It’s um… it’s Melissa’s birthday tomorrow.”

“Oh… oh right, well yeah, you should be with your mom.”

“But um, I could swing by your place after? If you’re free I mean?”

“You sure? If you want to spend the day with your mom, we can go some other time.”

Scully shook her head and pushed back some hair that had blown into her face from the gentle breeze. “She’s meeting her church friends.”

“Okay, great,” smiled Mulder. “Come by after and we’ll go for coffee.”

They continued to stroll along the towpath, chatting and laughing easily, pausing often to stand on the edge of a group of people to listen to a busker or to examine trinkets at one of the market stalls that were set up along their side of the river. While they walked, their fingers remained entwined, both of them enjoying the intimacy and laughter that they shared.

“So um, can I ask you a question?” Scully asked hesitantly after a few moments of comfortable silence.

“Fire away,” said Mulder, casting a glance at her.

“Tell me it’s none of my business if you want, but um… Agent Fowley.”

Mulder furrowed his brow and confusion crossed his face. “What about her?”

Scully sighed deeply and licked her lips. “She cornered me in the restrooms on three last week and implied that there was more between you than just a working relationship.” She glanced at a couple who passed by, then looked up at her partner. “In fact she implied that you wanted more from her than she was willing to give.” She looked briefly up at him. “I know it’s none of my business, you’re a grown man and I’m not your wife or your girlfriend but I don’t want to get caught up in some… juvenile love triangle.”

Mulder exhaled sharply, surprised at her words. “Scully I… I don’t know what to say but nothing’s happened with her. I’ve not seen her for weeks and even when I have, there’s no interest there for me. We were over years ago. I thought you realised that.” He nudged her gently with his shoulder. “I don’t teach just anyone how to play baseball. Even if it was _you_ that played _me,_ Dana Mantle.”

She hid a smile and flushed, recalling the feel of him wrapped around her, the sound of his voice and the feel of his breath puffing onto her cheek as he spoke directly next to her ear. Then he had taught her about hips before hands and she knew that if there hadn’t been a twelve year old kid next to the pitching machine, she would have dropped the bat, turned in his arms and kissed him with everything she had. It pushed every inch of the word _platonic_ to its limit, and was by far one of the most flirtatious and provocative moments of her life.

“I should hope not,” she said, nudging him back and glancing up at him. She sighed again and pulled her sweater closed after a gust of wind pushed it apart. “I just… don’t want to feel like I’m your second choice or someone you’re settling for.”

Mulder brought them to a stop and dropped her hand so she could stand opposite him. He ran his hand through his hair and put his hands on his hips. “Is that what you think? That you’re some kind of… some kind of consolation prize?”

Scully crossed her arms and looked away from him. “No… no, I-”

“Hey,” said Mulder quietly, taking a small step towards her and reaching out to touch her chin, encouraging her to meet his eyes. “ _You_ are nobody’s consolation prize, least of all mine.” He huffed a laugh. “I thought I’d made it clear how I felt about you, after Padgett… obviously I need to work on being a little more direct.” He said the last part more to himself. “Scully I want to do this with _you_. I’m not doing all this because I can’t have someone else. You’re the only who understands me, the only one who puts up with me calling you up at four in the morning to tell you I’ve booked us an eight am flight to go and investigate a Bigfoot sighting. Trust me when I say this is where I want to be.”

Scully huffed a laugh and shook her head, glad that he had put her worries to rest. “Okay,” she nodded, glad that he had reassured her that she had nothing to worry about.

She looped her arm through Mulder’s as they began to walk again and ran her hand down his forearm until their hands met once more and laced her fingers with his. They looked at one another and smiled, both knowing that they were reaching the point in their relationship that something had to give. One of them would have to make a move soon, they both knew that. They just didn’t know which would be the one to make it.

* * *

Mulder walked Scully to her door and waited while she removed her keys from her shoulder purse. Instead of unlocking the door, she gripped the keys in her hand and turned to lean against the wood to look at him. Hesitating a little, she reached out cautiously to catch his hand loosely in hers and lace her fingers through his. Despite spending the last hour strolling with him and having her hand firmly entwined with his, it felt different doing something so intimate outside her front door.

“So um… I really enjoyed myself tonight,” she said with a smile.

“Yeah it was fun.”

“We should do it again sometime.”

Mulder nodded. “Funny you should say that. There’s this new Italian place downtown, a real fancy place. No laminated menus, no plastic checkered table clothes and no waitresses with beehive hairstyles that call you honey in sight. I could book us a table for Saturday?”

Scully chuckled at his references to the usual kind of restaurant that they were used to. Not that they could be classed as restaurants. They were more like fast food diners in the middle of nowhere. “Yeah,” she said with a nod, “I’d like that.”

“Okay then,” Mulder said with a smile. “I’ll get us a table.” He sighed and glanced down the corridor to the exit. “I should go, it’s late,” he said as he looked back at her.

She nodded lightly and gave him a half smile. “Okay,” she murmured, knowing that it was probably for the best if he did leave as she was on the verge of throwing out all the rules she’d ever made for herself and dragging him inside her apartment.

What happened next, appeared to Scully as though it happened in slow motion. She could see in his eyes that he’d made a decision and then he began to move towards her. Mulder took half a step towards her and as he moved closer, he reached up with his free hand to skim his fingers down her jaw lightly. Feeling a little emboldened, Scully raised the hand that held her keys, slid it around his waist and tilted her head up to his, ready to meet him.

It was like being in his hallway all over again except this time, they had made no impromptu trips to Texas, had encountered no virus carrying bees and weren’t at the centre of an international conspiracy. They were just two normal, thirty something people who had been out to dinner. They were about to finally, _finally_ , take their relationship to the next stage and god knew, they were both ready.

“Good evening Miss Scully.”

The voice brought their moment to an unexpected end with the interruption of Scully’s elderly neighbour and Mulder took a half step backwards. Scully all but groaned out loud, wondering whether the universe had some kind of issue with her and Mulder trying to take the next step. She buried her head in Mulder’s shoulder for a second to hide her frustration and then looked down the hall at the old man who was heading to his own home.

“Hello Mr. Eriksson, how are you?”

“Been out with your young man have you?” The old man grinned at her and unlocked his door.

Scully squeezed Mulder’s fingers lightly. “Something like that,” she replied, glancing up at him.

“It’s good that you youngsters can do things normally these days. None of this advertising in newspapers to find a date. You know, in my day…”

“Hey, I’m gonna…” said Mulder quietly, tilting his head down the corridor as Mr. Eriksson continued to tell them about dating in his day. “Before he starts telling me you’re too good for me and I’m a bad influence blah, blah, blah. All of which is correct by the way, but he doesn’t need to know that.” She nodded and smiled, knowing that Mr. Eriksson had a chip on his shoulder at times, especially when it came to Mulder. She suspected it had to do with the late night disturbances that happened whenever he turned up.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?”

She nodded and tried to hide her disappointment at his swift exit. She kept hold of his hand as he walked away, lifting their hands. Mulder looked back and smiled as their hands separated. It was only when he had turned the corner and was out of sight that she unlocked her own front door.

“Goodnight Mr. Eriksson,” Scully said to the old man who was still telling her how he met his wife.

Knowing that he could talk for hours if encouraged, she slipped inside her apartment, closed the door behind her and flicked the lights on. After bolting the door and sliding the chain into place, she kicked off her shoes and let out a groan of relief as she rubbed a foot. As much as she loved these particular shoes, they weren’t meant for walking along uneven pavements for an hour.

As she passed the CD player, she switched it on and pressed play since she knew going to bed was pointless as she wouldn’t be getting to sleep anytime soon. She was far too wired after the evening she had spent with Mulder. An Elton John song poured from the speakers, Your Song, one of her favourites. She smiled and hummed along with the music as she returned her sweater to the closet and quickly changed into a pair of cotton navy blue pyjama shorts and an oversized white T-shirt that skimmed the edge of the shorts, that she was pretty sure had been Mulder’s at some point. She had no idea how it had come to be mixed in with her belongings, but it was comfortable and he wasn’t having it back.

Just as she was about to go into the bathroom to remove her makeup and brush her teeth, there was a knock on the door. She glanced at the clock. It was almost 10.45 and she wasn’t expecting anyone. She just hoped it wasn’t Mr. Eriksson wanting to continue his one sided conversation or someone asking her to turn the music down. It wasn’t even loud. Sometimes the people in this block were far too touchy. Sighing to herself, she padded to the door and looked through the peephole, expecting to see a disgruntled neighbour but was instead surprised to find an anxious looking Mulder on the other side, so she quickly unlocked the door and pulled it open.

“Mulder. Hi. What’s up?”

“Nothing, nothing, I um…” he stammered as he wiped his palms on his jeans. “I just, I forgot something earlier.”

Scully frowned a little in confusion. “Forgot what?”

“This.”

Mulder stepped forward with confidence, reached up to cup her jaw and kissed her squarely on the lips. Scully’s eyes widened for a second and her hands flew up to clutch his wrists, but then the reality of what was happening hit her and she sank into the kiss. Her eyes fluttered closed as his lips moved gently over hers. She slid her hands up his chest and over his shoulders to wrap her arms around his neck, holding him close. Not that she had any intention of pulling away from him and ending the best first kiss she’d ever had in her life. The kiss deepened as their lips parted, allowing them to taste each other. Scully couldn’t help the small moan that escaped her as she felt the electricity spark between them, sending a bolt straight through her that gave her goosebumps. Mulder wrapped an arm around her waist and weaved his other hand into her hair to tangle his fingers gently through the fiery strands. As they both reached the point where oxygen was critical to them continuing the kiss, they both pulled away from one another at the same time, breathing heavily, and looked at each other.

Scully reacted first. She leant forward and huffed a laugh as her forehead hit Mulder’s chest. He began to laugh too and stroked his hand over the back of her hair. After a second, her awareness of their surroundings came back to her and she realised that they were still standing in her doorway and she had become pressed firmly against him. She looked up at him and lifted up on her tiptoes to drop a light kiss on his mouth.

“I should go,” Mulder murmured, lowering his forehead to meet hers. “I just needed to say goodnight properly.”

Scully smiled at him and nodded. “Thank you for coming back.”

Before he could move away, Scully quickly reached up and slipped her hand around the back of his neck and kissed him firmly again, one last time. She couldn’t help but smile into the kiss when she felt his hand slide down her back and come to rest on the waistband of her shorts. As much as she wanted him to move his hand lower just a few more inches, she knew that if he did, she would never let him leave, so almost regretfully, she pulled away from him and reached around her back to catch his hand in hers. Mulder nodded in understanding.

“You should go,” she repeated back to him, her voice low, but as she nuzzled her nose against his, she knew her actions were contradictory to her words.

Mulder stole a final peck and then stood up, taking a half step backwards. “I’m going,” he said with a cautious conviction. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She nodded and leant against the doorframe to watch him walk away. As he turned the corner he looked back and smiled and then he was gone. Scully closed and locked her door and leant against it, wondering if that had really just happened. She reached up and touched her fingers to her lips, feeling the residual sensation of having Mulder’s lips against her own for the first time and knew that she hadn’t imagined it.

She was elated; she hadn’t felt happiness like this since she’d been told her cancer had gone into remission. Sighing happily and with a grin on her face that she would be hard pushed to remove, she went and poured herself a glass of red wine then settled into the sofa, feeling optimistic about the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aren’t they adorable? I know that this chapter may be a little out of character for them, but I couldn’t get these scenarios and the conversations out of my head. And also, while we know Scully is this amazingly strong woman who doesn’t care what people think, I still see that she’s insecure when it comes to Fowley and her place in Mulder’s life. I hope I made her feel a little better. ❤️


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s the first day back in the office for Mulder and Scully and Mulder is worried.

Mulder was nervous. It had been a long time since he’d felt like this way over a woman, but here he was with sweaty palms, chewing on his lip anxiously and wondering whether he should go and brush his teeth in the restroom down the hall or change into the spare shirt he kept at the office. He took a quick sniff under his arm and breathed a sigh of relief when he couldn’t smell anything other than the sandalwood and musk of his deodorant. The last thing he wanted to do was smell bad when Scully turned up. Still, he turned on his desk fan in an attempt to cool himself down a little.

He glanced at the clock. Almost 7. She’d be arriving anytime soon. It would be the first time he had seen her since they had shared a kiss outside her door on Saturday night. Despite making promises to meet the day before, Scully had called to regretfully cancel due to her mom being more upset than usual after their cemetery visit and she couldn’t leave her. He understood but was still disappointed.

Mulder still couldn’t believe he’d had the balls to go back to Scully’s apartment after leaving her on Saturday to kiss her the way he had. After being rudely interrupted by her cranky old neighbour who took great delight in verbally abusing him now and again, Mulder had found himself in the entrance hall of her building, mentally kicking himself for just up and leaving, especially when he could see that she was reciprocating his advances. So after a few minutes of telling himself to stop being so pathetic and to get back inside, he took the stairs back to her floor and hesitated outside her door, before knocking and waiting.

His heart had pounded so hard in his chest from the adrenaline that was coursing through his body, he had thought it would burst right through his chest like the John Hurt scene in _Alien_ or a Looney Tunes cartoon. He had snorted a laugh thinking about whether Scully would be able to shove his heart back inside and patch him up.

But then she was there asking if he was okay, wearing what he thought was one of his shirts and he had the strongest urge to tell her that he wasn’t okay, he was sick. Lovesick. And needed her to doctor him and make him better. But he didn’t think that would go down too well, so he stayed quiet about that. Instead he mumbled something else, he couldn’t even remember what, and kissed her soundly. He was pretty sure that his heart stopped at that point because he couldn’t feel it beating anymore. All that mattered in that moment was feeling her soft lips against his. And then he felt like he died for a second time when he felt her lips part, allowing him to taste her.

Mulder knew that even if she came to her senses and told him that their kiss was a huge mistake (which part of him had been worrying about since she cancelled on him), he would forever remember the taste of her; a hint of Merlot, peppermint from the mint she had found in the glove compartment in his car and something so inherently Scully that he couldn’t even put words to it.

He reached up and touched his bottom lip, which he was sure was still burning from the sensation of having her lips against his. It was, Mulder thought, a perfect kiss. Her lips had been soft and warm under his and there had been none of that first kiss awkwardness of bumped noses or clashing teeth. No. It had been as though they both just instinctively knew which way the other would turn, how much pressure they liked, how much tongue was appropriate for a first kiss and even more so on a first date.

Mulder leant back in his seat and fired a pencil up into the ceiling as he wondered what the protocol would be when she arrived. Would she expect another kiss? Would he? Would she even allow it at the office? Probably not. Anyone could walk in and catch them and after only recently getting the X-Files back, he didn’t want to jeopardise their tenure on them. Would it be awkward? Had she changed her mind and was trying to build up the courage to let him down gently? Would she even want to come into the office today? Or was she up in Skinner’s office right now handing in her letter of resignation, or worse, a transfer request? He blanched at the thought of her asking Skinner whether the offer to transfer clear across the country was still on the table because she was being sexually harassed by her partner. _Oh god,_ he thought, grimacing a little. _Have I sexually harassed her?_

Realistically, Mulder didn’t think that was the case. She had instigated their hand holding as they strolled along the river two nights ago and she had appeared to be ready to accept and return the kiss he was offering before her neighbour rudely interrupted. Not to mention the fact that she had seemed to be enjoying the kisses they’d shared when he had decided to go back to her apartment. And she had sounded apologetic and sincere when she had called him the day before to postpone their lunch plans.

That was the thing with Scully, she was never anything _but_ honest and sincere so of course he believed her. But what if this was the one time that she lied to him and wanted to let him down gently to his face, rather than being cold and telling him over the phone that _it’s not you, it’s me_. Mulder swore to himself there and then that if she used those words on him, he was going to march right up to Skinner’s office and request the transfer to Salt Lake City for himself, to spare himself the deep seated humiliation that came with those five words.

This was going to be a minefield.

Mulder looked at the clock in the corner of his computer. 7.20. Now he was starting to get worried. She was usually here by now. He looked at his cellphone to see whether he had missed a call during his daydreaming but the screen mocked him with its emptiness. If she was going to be late, she would call. Just as he was about to go and look for her, he heard the ding of the elevator and familiar footfalls approaching the office. Seconds later she was there looking flustered and annoyed.

“Sorry I’m late,” she said as she entered the office in a whirlwind of aggravation. “Skinner cornered me on my way in. I swear he was waiting for me to arrive. He wanted to ask if I would mind filling in for someone over at Quantico for a couple of days. Obviously, I had to say yes, so, I won’t be here Wednesday to Friday this week. You think you can handle three days without me?” She turned to look at Mulder with a sigh and blew her hair back from her face. “Morning, by the way,” she eventually said, letting a small smile cross her face.

Mulder simply stared at her. She was beautiful. _Stunningly prepossessing_ Padgett had written in his novel. He didn’t know the half of it. Mulder had known for almost seven years how attractive she was, but this morning, she looked radiant. Her suits had started to become much more fitted recently, showing off her incredible figure, but never to the point of inappropriateness. This morning, she wore a charcoal skirt suit, a white silk button up blouse that had the top two buttons unfastened and three inch heels that made her legs look like they went on forever. As his eyes looked her up and down, his gaze stopped on her lips. Pale berry coloured lips that looked even more delectable than usual. When he finally managed to drag his eyes away from her mouth and met her eyes he saw that she had been checking him out exactly the same way he had. He had been crazy to think that she didn’t want this as much as he did.

Glancing quickly at the door and keeping his senses on high alert to make sure they were completely alone, he got up from his desk and approached her with a false confidence. He saw Scully’s breathing hitch a little as he stood, knowing exactly what he was going to do. A tiny part of him was yelling that this was wrong, they were at work and anyone could walk in on them. He saw her eyes widen a little as she watched him, knowing exactly what he was about to do, but she didn’t have it in her to stop him. She didn’t want him to stop. She took a tiny step backwards and found herself pressed against the edge of a table, which she was glad of. It might help her stay upright.

Without saying a word, Mulder cupped her jaw in his hands and kissed her with a conviction that was more befitting of someone who had been in a relationship for a long time. He felt relief sweep through him when she didn’t push him away and slap him, instead choosing to sink into the kiss and reach up to scratch her fingers through his hair. Mulder couldn’t help but feel his ego inflate a little when he heard the small moan that escaped from her when their lips parted, allowing them to deepen the kiss. It was just the right side of appropriate, but Mulder knew that wouldn’t last very long if they continued kissing the way they were and Scully continued to release the occasional quiet, breathy moan.

He knew that he would quite happily stay in her arms for the rest of his life, but the need to breathe only just outweighed the need to keep her lips on his and they broke apart with a quiet _smack_ , both breathing heavily and looking at one another.

“Hi,” murmured Mulder, flicking his eyes quickly down to her lips and back.

“Hi,” replied Scully with a small smile as she wiped her thumb over his lower lip gently to remove the smudge of lipstick that had transferred to him. It wouldn’t do to have someone come down here and suspect anything if they happened to spot it on him. “I’m making a rule,” she began, after stealing a light peck and nuzzling her nose against his. “That was a one time thing,” she murmured. “Outside of this building, kiss me all you want, but if anyone catches us down here…”

Mulder nodded and smiled as he took the unspoken hint and stepped backwards out of her space. As he returned to his desk, he was certain that he was failing in trying to hide his elation at her giving him the green light to continue with the kissing. Scully smirked at his retreating form, having seen the sheer delight on his face. She licked her lips as she smoothed down her hair and suit jacket and tried to regain her equilibrium. It wasn’t fair that he was able to knock her off her feet with just a touch and a kiss. If this was the way it was after just two kisses, she supposed, she couldn’t wait to see how things developed when they finally took the next step.

“So,” said Mulder after clearing his throat, “how’s your mom?”

Scully sighed and took a seat in one of the chairs opposite him, thankful for the change of subject. “Upset that Charlie never called. I know he blames me but you’d think he would at least call his mother to see how she is. If he doesn’t want to see me or speak to me, that’s his choice and I respect that, but don’t take it out on our mom.” She sighed deeply again. “Even Bill doesn’t blame me and we both know how he feels about my career choices. I just never expected it to be like this with Charlie.”

Mulder nodded, knowing the fall out that had happened in the Scully family after Melissa died. Scully had turned up at his apartment the day after the funeral, devastated that Charlie had let loose on her when she was at her most vulnerable, blaming her for their sisters death. None of them had spoken to or seen him for four years now and Mulder knew that Scully _did_ blame herself for how her family had been torn apart.

“Hey,” Mulder said softly, reaching across the desk in the hope that she would take his hand. He saw the internal debate cross her face for a split second about whether it was appropriate but deciding that after the kiss they just shared, a hand hold was nothing so she reached over and placed her palm in his. His voice was quiet when he spoke again. “It’s not your fault,” Mulder said, stroking his thumb across the back of her hand. “He should have just blamed me like Bill does. What’s one more person hating my guts, huh?” He squeezed her hand lightly when she didn’t smile. “The most important people in this are your mom and Melissa and neither of them blame you.”

Scully gave him a tight smile. “I know.” She wasn’t entirely sure that she believed him. How could Melissa not blame her? She had taken the bullet that was meant for Scully and truthfully, she didn’t blame Charlie for holding her responsible. “Anyway,” she said brightly in an attempt to lighten the mood. “While I was with my mom yesterday, she gave me her tickets to see West Side Story tonight since she can’t make it. Church emergency.” Mulder nodded but wondered what exactly constituted a church emergency. “So, if you’re free do you… want to come with me?”

He grinned widely at her. “Scully, are you asking me out on a date?”

“Shut up,” she muttered with an eye roll. “Are you coming or not?” His grin and eyebrow wiggle were the last straw and she stood up. “You’re such a child,” she told him but there was no mistaking the humour in her voice.

Mulder laughed as he stood and caught her wrist to hold it lightly. “You had me at church emergency,” he grinned.

Scully rolled her eyes and smiled as he let go of her arm. “You can pick me up at 6.30.”

Mulder watched her as she disappeared into the back part of the office where her computer and files were and as he sat back in his chair and pulled up his emails, he couldn’t remove the smile from his face. He felt happy. Happier than he had done for a long time and it came from knowing that he was right where he was meant to be. His relationship with Scully was evolving into something that he had always wanted; stability, security and someone that he loved beyond all measure.

He knew that they had a long way to go, but they were starting on the journey together and that was all he could have hoped for. Mulder suspected that the feelings he had for Scully were reciprocal, but he wasn’t naïve enough to believe that they were beginning their happy ever after. They had kissed twice. But, he was feeling optimistic and he had a good feeling about where this was heading and from the quiet humming that was drifting from around the corner, something she only seemed to do when she was happy and content, his partner was feeling the same.

The grin remained as he began to work his way through a weekends worth of emails and for the first time in a long time, he felt excited for the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope I did Mulder justice here. His insecurity at believing Scully can do better than him is adorable; we all know they’re made for each other.


	6. Chapter Six

Scully knocked on Mulder’s front door then tugged on the hem of her tank top and the same oversized button up sweater she had worn the night they had shared their first kiss and smoothed down her hair, betraying her nerves as she waited. She cleared her throat and glanced at the small carry on bag that stood at her feet, feeling a flutter in her stomach as she did so. It was Friday night and they hadn’t seen much of each other all week. With her covering classes and labs over at Quantico for three days and the amount of work that involved, seeing each other in the evenings was out of the question, much to both of their disappointment.

The overnight bag had been his idea after they had spoken the night before and made arrangements to see one another after work. _You could bring a bag_ he had thrown casually into their conversation _, y’know, just in case you’re here late_. They had both known what he meant and she wasn’t adverse to his suggestion. Things were moving slowly between them and while she was grateful for that, the speed at which their budding relationship was progressing was surprising to her. She had always believed that their eventual foray into physicality would be explosive and fast paced. Never did she imagine that it would actually involve tentative kisses and hesitancy with one another, but a part of her liked that. Her relationship with Mulder was the most important thing to her and if they got this wrong, they ran the risk of ruining what they had. But she suspected that once things became physical, they would be in it for the long haul. She had wanted this for too long to then give it up.

So now, she was standing in the hallway outside his apartment with a movie in one hand, a bag of Chinese food in the other and the overnight bag at her feet, waiting for him to open the door. As she heard the locks turning, Scully pushed her nerves down and smiled when the door swung open.

“Hi,” he said, stepping aside and allowing her entrance. He took the food from her, set her bag next to the door and then confidently leant down to kiss her briefly in greeting, sending a spark of electricity surging through her and giving her goosebumps.

“Hi,” she repeated almost breathlessly when he pulled back from her. She hated that he could affect her like that with just one kiss.

Mulder closed the door behind her and after giving her shoulder a brief squeeze, he took the food into the kitchen. “What movie did you get?”

“Die Hard,” she replied, following him.

“Oh great, I have to compete with Bruce Willis for your attention,” he said sarcastically, glancing at her with a smile.

“Well, it was that or Aliens.”

Mulder laughed as he pulled out bottles of alcohol from the refrigerator. “Yeah, that’s maybe a little too much like work. Wine or beer?”

“Wine. To be honest, I didn’t want to spend the evening arguing with you over the scientific inaccuracies and whether or not Newt could realistically survive on her own in such a hostile environment.”

He laughed again as he handed her the wine bottle and two glasses, then led her through to the living room. “Speaking of hostile environments, how was Quantico?”

“Fine,” she sighed as she sank onto the sofa and curled a leg up underneath her. “Ben Wallace asked me if I wanted to go for dinner tonight.”

Mulder glanced at her and raised an eyebrow. Ben Wallace was in his late thirties, attractive and was, Mulder admitted grudgingly, a nice guy. He worked in cyber crime, didn’t create waves within the Bureau and was supposedly earmarked for the top job within his department. He was the kind of guy that any woman would be lucky to be with and he reminded Mulder a little of Agent Pendrell; easy going, kind of shy and turned into a wreck whenever he was around Scully. But then, most men did. Some women too. It was also no secret that he had the hots for her, so Mulder was surprised that the other man had finally built up the courage to ask her out on a date.

“What did you say?”

Scully just looked at him and rolled her eyes as she removed her sweater and laid it over the arm of the sofa. “Mulder, I’m sitting in your apartment, what do you think?” He chuckled and returned to pulling food boxes from the bag. “I um… I told him I was… seeing somebody.” She flushed and kept her eyes trained on the top of the bottle as she unfastened it, feeling Mulder’s eyes on her. They hadn’t yet classified what this thing was between them, so she was unsure how he would react to her admission.

Surprised, he cleared his throat and nodded. “I think you just broke that man’s heart.” Grinning he held up a fork and a pair of chopsticks up to her. She chose the chopsticks and handed over the bottle.

Scully shrugged and smiled almost shyly. “Well, this guy… he’s worth it.”

Mulder nodded and poured wine in both glasses, playing along. “Really? He’s not some crackpot that’s obsessed with aliens, UFOs and can quote you word for word pretty much every episode of the Twilight Zone?”

“Oh he’s absolutely all of those,” she agreed, lifting her glass to her lips to sip her wine, “but he’s cute and he’s a really good kisser.”

“He sounds like an ass. You can do better.”

Smiling, Scully leant over to peck his lips, then kicked her flat ballet shoes under the coffee table, picked up her plate of food and settled into the sofa to eat. Mulder laughed and squeezed her thigh affectionately, then did the same. They chatted easily while eating, bringing each other up to speed with how their weeks had played out whilst separated. Mulder admitted that he hadn’t done much work while he was left alone, but had been approached about some interesting looking cases that he wanted her to take a look at on Monday. Scully appreciated his leaving the work at the office and told him as much.

By the time Mulder put the movie on, they had switched to beer and any nerves that either of them may have had, were gone. They sat side by side on the sofa, bare feet propped next to the others on the coffee table. Scully looked at their feet and marvelled at the difference in size. She often forgot just how drastic the size difference was between them but that was because Mulder never used her height or her gender against her. He had treated her as his equal since day one, often deferring to her on cases and never being patronising or condescending towards her, not even when surrounded by other members of the boys network who believed that women were only there to take notes or bring them a coffee. It was part of the reason why she had fallen in love with him.

“Hey, can I ask you a question?” Mulder’s voice tore Scully from her thoughts and she looked at him. “Die Hard. Christmas movie or not?”

Her lips quirked in a small smile at his words. “Well… yes, obviously.”

Mulder grinned at her. “I knew there was a reason I liked you.”

“I only brought it tonight because Bruce Willis is hot in a vest,” she smirked.

“You’re such a girl sometimes.”

She sipped her beer and looked up at him. “Thanks for noticing.”

Mulder huffed a laugh and looked her up and down in an _oh I’ve noticed_ gesture. “I’m gonna grab another beer. You want one?”

Scully nodded and watched him leave the room, grinning to herself as her eyes landed on his backside. He really did have a great ass. As she drained the remainder of her beer, the phone began to ring so she stood to grab the handset off the desk and answered it.

“Hello?”

“Fox, I… oh, it’s you. Is Fox there?”

Scully rolled her eyes at the familiar voice and glanced at Mulder as he came back into view, holding the beer bottles in his grip. “Agent Fowley.” Mulder stopped in his tracks and watched her as she spoke on the phone. “No, he’s a little busy right now.”

“Then why are you there?”

Scully huffed a laugh. “I don’t think that’s really any of your business, do you?”

It was Diana’s turn to huff a laugh. “Just ask him to call me.”

Before Scully could respond, the dialling tone filled her ears so she rolled her eyes and returned the handset to the holder and looked at Mulder in the archway. “Diana wants you to call her.”

Before she had even finished speaking, Mulder’s cellphone began to ring and from his furrowed brow and sigh, Scully could see that he was annoyed. He picked it up, cancelled the call, turned the phone off and tossed it onto the armchair.

“Wow, she really doesn’t trust me to pass her message on, does she?” Scully asked sarcastically.

Mulder sat down heavily on the sofa and patted the seat next to him, encouraging her to join him. “Forget about her. We’re supposed to be watching a movie. Look,” he said with a gesture to the TV, “Bruce Willis is in a vest again.”

Scully forced a smile, pushed off from the desk to approach him and joined him on the sofa with a sigh, sitting sideways and looking at him. “I’m sorry, I’m not used to… this.”

Mulder reached out with a little hesitation to catch her hand in his. “This?”

“This,” she repeated, gesturing between them. “Being with someone,” she elaborated. Their fingers laced together and Scully looked up at him briefly then back at their joined hand. “Starting a relationship. Being with someone that someone else wants.”

“Well,” Mulder began, lowering his voice a little, “if it makes you feel any better, neither am I.”

She smiled a little. “I don’t want to be _that_ kind of woman, jealous and untrusting.”

Mulder shifted in his seat to face her. “Hey, look at me.” When she did, he reached out and cupped her cheek gently. “I told you, you’re all I want. I want to do _this_ with you. Nobody else.”

Scully smiled at him before leaning over and pressing her lips against his for a soft, sweet kiss. As she retreated, she opened her eyes to look at him and felt something shift between them as the air grew charged. Mulder leant towards her and kissed her again, a little harder, which was reciprocated. She raised a hand to the back of his neck and tugged him gently forward, pulling him closer as she fell backwards on the sofa and allowed their kiss to deepen.

Her head was spinning, in a good way. She knew that this kiss was leading somewhere and it made her pulse react. For the longest time, Scully had imagined what it would be like to be kissed properly by him. Kissed like it meant something, kissed like it would end only one way. And now she knew. When his lips found her neck, she sighed happily and scratched her fingers gently down his spine.

In her minds eye she could see them barrelling down a railroad, careening almost out of control and up ahead was a fork in the track. One side led to her putting an end to what they were doing and taking control back, not because she didn’t want to do this with him, she did, but because she was afraid. Afraid of the consequences and what it would mean for them if they were to take this final step. Afraid that everything would change between them and it would ruin what they had made for themselves. A few heated kisses wouldn’t derail their relationship or friendship, but anything more and they ran the risk of losing one another. That side led to maintaining the status quo, going home to an empty apartment at night, microwave meals for one and one too many pitying looks from her family.

The other side of the fork led to everything she wanted. Not the same kind of things she wanted when she was younger; a house, a husband, a family. Her wants were more realistic for who she was now. She just wanted someone to love, who loved her back, would be there for her when she needed them and would protect her as a lover and not just a friend and with Mulder, she knew she would have all that. She would have someone to talk to, someone to cuddle up on the sofa with or make plans with. Talk to over dinner about how their days had been.

Scully knew that a relationship with Mulder was never going to be easy. He was stubborn and single minded and while he had gotten better at not doing it, he still sometimes disregarded her science because it didn’t fit with his theories. But he was loyal to the end, he was honest and she suspected that when he loved, he loved _hard._ She would become the centre of his universe, put on a pedestal and she knew that he would never do anything to intentionally hurt her.

Scully was often surprised that his capacity for love hadn’t been severely damaged, thanks to his upbringing. She wouldn’t have been surprised if the loss of his parent’s affection in the aftermath of his sister’s abduction, had impacted his ability to have a healthy relationship in adulthood. And maybe it had. His time with Phoebe had been toxic from start to finish and from what the Gunmen had told her about his time with Diana, that hadn’t been much better. Part of her was worried that they would suffer the same fate, becoming resentful and irritated with one another, but deep down, she knew that it wouldn’t be the case with them. She had never used him for her own gain, never manipulated him or lied to him. Everything she had done over the last six years was to help him, to validate him and his work, to make people see that he wasn’t crazy. To be a friend to him first and foremost.

After the Padgett attack, that was when she knew for certain that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. Of course, she had known for the longest time that she was in love with him; even Padgett had seen that. But after his confessions in that darkened parking lot on the way home from the hospital, she had come to realise that he had been ready to move from their platonic status for far longer than she had. She knew now that he was simply waiting for her to catch him up. It was clear to her now. And now she knew, without any question or hesitation from herself, that she loved him back, just as much. She should have been afraid of the strength of her feelings for this man, but now, feeling how tenderly he was kissing her, the fear faded away.

It was this final thought that prompted her to push gently on Mulder’s shoulders so she could tell him. The words were bubbling inside her and before they took this any further, she needed him to know how she felt. At the gentle pressure on his shoulders, Mulder pulled back and looked at her with a question in his eyes. _Have I gone too far?_ Scully smiled, reassuring him that he hadn’t. He sat up to give her some space, but she followed him, sat astride him and quickly leant in to kiss him again softly, lest he get any kind of thoughts that she didn’t want to do this. His hands drifted slowly up and down her back and she could feel the relief emanating from him. She stroked her hands gently down his cheeks and caressed his kiss swollen bottom lip with her thumbs lovingly and followed the movement with her suddenly moist eyes.

As she pressed her forehead against his, she could see that the fork in the track was upon her but decision made, she forged ahead and exhaled slowly.

“I love you.”

Her voice cracked a little as she whispered the words that would ultimately change the nature of her relationship with him. In reality, those three words didn’t even begin to cover how she felt about him, but sat here with him, about to take the next step, they were the only thing she could say.

Mulder smiled at her and knew how much it had taken her to confess how she felt. He nodded a little, her words ringing in his ears and while the urge to repeat her response when he told her how he felt months earlier in that Bermudan hospital room, he decided against it. He wasn’t sure that she would appreciate his humour at such a pivotal moment. Instead, he reached up to hold her head in his hands and looked at her with such affection that it made her heart swell.

He pulled her to him and kissed her and smiled. “I love you,” he murmured against her lips. “This is it for me Scully. This is where I want to be.”

She nodded tearfully at him. “So do I.”

Their lips met again for a long, slow kiss that they both poured all their emotion into, conveying exactly how they felt. Scully was excited for the future that she envisaged for them. It wasn’t going to be a hearts and flowers existence. They weren’t those kind of people. It was going to be a future that consisted of what they already had, mutual respect and a closeness that overcame everything, combined with the kind of love that was all consuming and transcended anything they had ever experienced. She knew that it would be difficult, all relationships could be, but she had no doubt that whatever came at them, they would work through it together, just as they always had.

Scully sighed happily. She couldn’t wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone that has read this story, left feedback or kudos. You have no idea how much I appreciate it. You’re the best, thank you.


	7. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s the morning after the night before.

**Epilogue**

  
When Scully woke up that morning she was, she realised with a little dismay, alone. In fact, if she didn’t feel the delicious aches in her body from groups of muscles that had been depressingly underused the last few years, she wouldn’t have even believed any of it had occurred. It had been far too long since she’d slept with someone but she and Mulder had well and truly ended their mutual drought together. She knew she shouldn’t complain; even if it had taken them longer than she expected to reach this point, it had been totally worth the wait.

Scully stretched languidly in the familiar bed, smiling to herself but wondering where the hell Mulder was. She swept her hands over the sheets and found them cold and knew he had been missing for a while. After exhaling slowly, she called his name but heard nothing but the faint bubbling from the fish tank in the other room and she knew she was alone in the apartment. As she rolled onto her side, she spotted a note on the pillow.

_Went to get breakfast. Didn’t want to wake you, you looked far too peaceful. Won’t be long. M._

She smiled and set the note on the bedside table, then sat up, tucking the covers under arms as she did. A quick glance around the room to locate her clothes ended in failure as she recalled that they had been strewn haphazardly about the living room after confessing their feelings for one another. She bit her lip to hide a smile as the memory of Mulder slowly and almost reverently removing her clothes came back to her. It had been by far, the most intense and erotic moment of her whole life.

Glancing around the bedroom again and rolling over to where Mulder had slept, she spotted his white t-shirt on the floor. Reaching down, she grabbed it and pulled it on, retrieved a pair of clean panties from her overnight bag and then went in search of her clothes. On entering the living room, she glanced at the sofa, the memories of what they’d done on that sofa coming rushing back and flushed, before noticing that her jeans and T-shirt were folded neatly atop the coffee table. God she loved him.

Her matching black lace underwear set lay on top and while the thought that maybe she should change into her own clothes briefly crossed her mind, she pushed it away, deciding to stay in Mulder’s shirt. When he eventually returned from from buying their breakfast, she hoped that there would be a re-run of the previous night and if that was the case, the last thing she wanted to do was have too many clothes in their way. Plus, she was pretty sure he would appreciate her wearing of his shirt too. She bit back a grin and went to make a pot of coffee but found some already brewing. As she carried it back through to the living room, there was a knock at the door. Rolling her eyes, she set her mug on the dining table and approached the door, ready to tell Mulder off for leaving his door keys behind again.

“You really forgot your-” Scully asked, as she pulled it open, falling silent when she laid eyes on the person in the hallway. “keys.”

The two women looked at one another, both surprised to see each other. Diana’s eyes travelled across Scully’s lack of clothes and swallowed hard. She knew instantly what she had walked in on and didn’t quite know how to react, but she quickly regained her equilibrium and looked the other woman in the eye, hoping she didn’t give away just how unsettled she was actually feeling.

“Agent Scully. What are you doing here?” She congratulated herself on sounding far more confident than she was feeling.

“That’s really none of your business,” she replied with more conviction than she felt. Of all the people to turn up and find her like this, it had to be _her_.

“Is Fox here?”

Scully cleared her throat and crossed her arms. “No, he isn’t.”

Diana smirked and dropped her eyes to Scully’s attire again. “Do you make a habit of wearing Fox's clothes and hanging around his empty apartment?”

“I don’t really see how that’s any of your business, Agent Fowley. Now is there a message you’d like me to pass on to Mulder for you?”

Before she could respond, a _ding_ from the end of the hall caught both women’s attention. Diana looked down the hallway and watched Mulder step out of the elevator, brown paper bag in hand. Upon seeing Diana outside his apartment, he hesitated for a split second as he debated with jumping back into the elevator and hiding away from this inevitable awkwardness. Knowing Scully would kick his ass if he left her to deal with this situation alone, he strode down the hallway, not expecting to see Scully in his doorway, wearing his T-shirt and little else. _She looks pained_ , he thought as he caught her eye but he cleared his throat to drag Diana’s attention away from her.

“Diana. What are you doing here?”

She glanced at Scully, who hadn’t moved from the doorway. “Well you weren’t answering my calls last night. Now I see why.”

Mulder sighed and shook his head. “I was busy.”

“I’ll bet,” she smirked.

He ignored her barb. “What’s so important that you had to show up unannounced on a Saturday morning?”

“Well if you’d listened to the messages I left on your cell phone, you’d know.” She glanced at Scully again, leaving them both with no doubt that she knew what was going on. “I actually wanted to talk to you about a case that I thought you might be interested in looking into with me. The detective that contacted me assumed I was still assigned to the X-Files and-"

Mulder shook his head, interrupting her. “Diana, if you have an X-File, you can bring it by mine and Scully’s office on Monday. We’ll decide if it warrants any kind of investigation and if it does, we’ll contact the detective ourselves.”

Diana looked at Mulder for a second and then glanced at Scully again, who was watching the scene with interest. “Would you mind giving us a moment? I’d like to speak to Fox alone.”

Scully rolled her eyes and looked at Mulder. “I’m going to have a shower.” She threw an icy glare at Diana before turning and disappearing into the apartment.

“What do you want Diana? You didn’t come all the way down here on a Saturday morning to talk to me about a potential case.”

A small smile curled her lips and she nodded. “I admit that my reasons aren’t entirely altruistic. I wanted to… I thought we had something Fox. I thought we were getting back to where we used to be.”

Mulder huffed a laugh and rubbed his mouth. “Diana-”

She took a step towards him and reached up to remove some imaginary lint from the centre of his shirt. “I thought you wanted me as much as I want you.”

He reached up to remove her hand and stepped back to put some space between them again. “If I’ve given you that impression, I apologise. You and I were over a long time ago and I don’t make a habit of going back in time. Once it’s over, it’s over for a reason.”

“And that was my mistake. I never stopped loving you, you know.”

“Diana-”

“We’re good together Fox. You know that. And if we were both working on the X-Files-”

“The X-Files belong to Scully and me. She’s not leaving and neither am I.”

“You don’t think it would work better with like-minded people? Surely it would be beneficial to you to have a partner who works with you than against you? I imagine having to defend your theories and being questioned constantly gets rather tiring.”

“It works just fine.” Mulder sighed and shook his head. “Is there something else you wanted?”

Diana bit her lip and glanced inside the apartment and then back at him. “You’re sleeping with her, aren’t you?”

“I don’t-”

She shrugged, almost nonchalantly. “I don’t blame you. Although I didn’t think diminutive redheads were your type. She’s attractive enough I suppose, if you like that kind of thing. However, I wouldn’t have guessed that her scientific rigidity and cold demeanour were a turn on for you. Not when her beliefs are in direct contradiction to your own.”

Mulder shook his head and huffed a laugh. “Is that what you really think? I never thought you’d be one to get caught up in rumour and gossip. I guess I’m not the only who’s changed.”

He stepped around her, intending to get back inside his apartment, find Scully and hope she hadn’t changed her mind about wanting to be with him. Diana whirled around and placed her hand on his arm as she stepped in front of him to block his way.

“I’m sorry, you’re right, I don’t know her. I just…” Diana sighed with exasperation. “I don’t know what’s happened to us Fox. I honestly believed you wanted the same as I did. I thought you were glad to see me again.”

“You left without so much as a word of explanation and disappeared to Europe. I had to find out from your mother who showed up at my door with a letter you had mailed to her. I moved on Diana. I moved on a long time ago and you can take shots at Scully if that makes you feel better about yourself, but you have absolutely no right to. She’s never betrayed me, never lied to me, never walked out on me. She’s the most honest person I’ve ever met. You might want to take a leaf out of her book sometime.”

Diana watched him walk around her when the realisation hit her. “Oh my god… you’re in love with her, aren’t you?”

Mulder stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her, huffing a laugh as he did so and refusing to answer her question. “I’m busy so you’ll have to excuse me. Email me the details of the case and Scully and I will look into it.”

He closed the door in her face and dropped the paper bag onto the dining table. Shaking his head, he flicked the lock on the door and headed into the bedroom, looking at the partially closed bathroom door as he did so. The shower was still running and he could hear movement inside so suspecting that she was feeling uneasy about what had just occurred, he made a decision. Quickly stripping off his clothes, he grabbed a couple of towels from the cupboard, pushed open the door and after shedding his boxers, he joined Scully in the shower.

If she felt self conscious about him joining her, she didn’t show it. His eyes roamed over her back and he lingered on her ouroboros tattoo at the base just to the right of her spine, right where his hand would often drift when they walked together. As Scully washed soap suds from her front, oblivious to Mulder’s wandering mind, he couldn’t help but recall the last time they had showered together, albeit against their will. _At least there are no cameras watching our every move, no harsh chemicals or scrubbing brushes this time_ Mulder thought to himself. A brief smile quirked his lips as he remembered that even though they tried not to, curiosity got the better of them. They had both looked.

“She gone?” Scully asked, interrupting his perusal of her. She kept her back to him as she smoothed her hair back and waited for him to respond.

Mulder nodded as he dropped a kiss onto her wet hair and stroked his hands up her arms to her shoulders, which he squeezed gently. The temptation to make a joke was almost overwhelming but he knew it wouldn’t be appreciated so he swallowed it down. _Read the room_ he told himself. “She is,” he murmured.

She turned around tentatively to look at him. “Do I need to kick anybody's ass?”

Mulder chuckled at the humour in her voice. “No ass kicking required. Indian guides honour.”

Scully smiled lightly up at him as she raised up on her toes to brush her lips against his and at the same time dropped a hand to pinch his backside. “Good because you’ve got a really nice ass and I’d hate to damage it.”

“My ass thanks you.” She smiled again, but Mulder could see the uncertainty behind it. “Hey, I told you, you have nothing to worry about,” he said softly. “I told you I loved you and I meant it.”

Scully nodded, wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head against his chest. She smiled when his arms folded around her shoulders. She couldn’t help but wonder how it was possible that two confident, law enforcement professionals at the tops of their fields, were driven to have such high levels of apprehension about their bond with one another. It had been a long time since either of them had been with anyone, so she hoped that they could avoid any minefields or misunderstandings that came with being out of the relationship loop for as long as they both had.

“Hey, um… are we… y’know… okay?” His insecurity shone from him like a lighthouse.

Scully raised up to kiss him again, hoping that would answer his question. As his fears were allayed, the gentle kiss began to deepen and would have led somewhere, had a sudden realisation not invaded her brain, which caused her to pull away and bury her head in Mulder’s chest with a groan.

“Oh god… she really saw me wearing nothing but your shirt.”

He chuckled and stroked his hand down her hair and back. “Yeah, that was… unexpected.”

“Of all the people to turn up…” She shook her head. “I think I’d have felt _less_ uncomfortable if my mothers priest had walked in on us having sex.”

Mulder nodded and grinned. “I can see how that would be less awkward.”

“Do you think she suspects anything?”

Mulder thought about what Diana had said outside, _you’re in love with her, you’re sleeping with her._ Whether his feelings for Scully were that transparent that his ex could see through them, he didn’t know. But what he _did_ know was that confirming his ex knew about them, while standing in his shower with a very naked and very wet Dana Scully, was absolutely not the thing to do. So, as she stood watching him, biting her lip nervously and looking up at him eagerly with her anxious eyes, he said the only thing he could think of to say.

He shook his head. “Not a thing.”

With that, he pulled her close, leant down and kissed her soundly, pushing all thoughts of the other woman from both their minds. All he cared about was Scully and he was going to do absolutely everything in his power to prove to her just how much he cared for her, wanted her, loved her.

Starting right now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the previous chapter was meant to be the last, but I still had an idea kicking around my brain. It’s been a while, but this really is the end of the story. This one anyway.


End file.
